Chasing Shadows: An Alice In Borderlands Fanfic (Completed)

Chapter 7: Confessions

I stumbled back through the hotel lobby in a daze.

He might still be alive somewhere.

It was utter nonsense. It had to be...yet...

I sighed. I didn't know. Could Karube be out there somewhere waiting for me? At home in Tokyo...our Tokyo, even? It sounded too good to be true. I saw him die.

I was so wrapped up in my thoughts, I didn't hear the men approach until it was too late.

I had just arrived at the darkened corridor that led to Niragi's room when someone hit me from behind. I fell to the floor and turned to see four men looming over me.

The first reached down and grabbed me by the wrap that covered my bikini.  "Well, well. If it isn't the girl of that fucker who killed my best friend."

He slammed me into the wall, knocking the breath from me. I saw stars in the darkness.

The man pushed against me as I struggled to clear my head. I blinked away the stars and elbowed him in the face, causing him to stagger back.  But before I could run, another man grabbed me and slammed my head into the wall. I slumped to the floor. Fuck, that hurt.

I couldn't get my bearings. I tried to crawl away, but someone held me fast. Then the first man was back. He held me down and ripped at my clothes, spewing words I couldn't understand with my mind feeling like scrambled eggs.

The man attempted to enter me, but I lashed out with my legs, kicking him off me. He was back on me right away, his friends holding my arms and legs.

I screamed.

And then shots rang out, dropping the men one by one. Again, I started crawling, but someone caught me. I fought him.

"Jennie-chan, it's me. It's okay now. You're safe."

Only one person had ever called me Jennie-chan. "Karube?"

No. That wasn't right. But before I could figure out who it was, my world sank into darkness.

***

I awoke in Niragi's room. He lay beside me, stroking my hair. I sat up, holding my head. "What happened?" My thoughts were muddied.

"You called me Karube." When I looked at him funny, he grinned and said, "Some idiots thought they could rape my girl. I stopped them."

My girl. When had I become his girl? "How long was I out?" I asked instead.

"Not long. Just a few minutes. You should lay back down. You look awfully pale."

The world spun, and I nestled my head back on the pillow, facing him. "Thank you...for saving me."

He waved it off. "From now on, I don't want you going anywhere without me. It's too dangerous."

I scoffed. "I can take care of myself."

"Really? Like four men trying to rape you?"

"If I had a gun..."

Now it was his turn to scoff. "Do you even know how to shoot one?"

My laugh surprised him. "Bish, please. I was number one in State finals."

"Huh?"

"I was a sharpshooter in school. Best in my state. The medal's hanging on the wall of our bedroom at home."

Our bedroom...

He might still be alive somewhere.

The sudden thought made me shudder. I brushed it away.

"So...you're good with a gun?" Niragi looked surprised. "Why did you never say?"

I shrugged. "It's been at least five years since I last shot a rifle. Plus, when you're depressed and want to die, thinking of guns and shooting isn't the best."

"Ah. True."

We fell silent for a little while, then I asked, "How did you end up here...in Borderland?"

Niragi laid back against the pillow with his hands behind his head, his feet crossed. He stared at the ceiling. "I wasn't even in Tokyo at the time. I was in the mountains visiting my parents."

"Do you miss them?"

"My parents? Nah. They were strict. Very conservative. I was never good enough for them. They wanted me to replace my older brother after he died, but I couldn't. I just wasn't as good as him. Add to that the bullying, and I was just one big disappointment."

"You were bullied in school?"

"Yeah." He looked embarrassed. "My father called me weak because I couldn't stand up to them. Baka!" I didn't know if he was calling his father or himself an idiot. "But they were the worst. They didn't just tease me or push me around. They would assault me. Their favorite game..." He paused and shuddered, drawing in a shaky breath. His eyes never left the ceiling.  When he continued, his voice was quieter, like he didn't want anyone to know this. "Their favorite game was hitting rocks at me with a bat. And I'm not talking pebbles here. Big rocks, like baseball sized. If I flinched or ducked, they'd...they'd force me to eat rice they'd pissed in. That's what they called me. Urine rice."

"That's horrible." I laid a hand on his chest.

"I was thinking of that when I came across a cave I used to hide in back then. I went to check it out. That's where I found the rifle. It was just lying there, like it was waiting for me. Then everything went dark at the mouth of the cave, like a storm had descended. Except, when I walked outside, there was no storm. And I was here."

I told my own tale. "Karube and I were on our way to a festival. I remember I saw fireworks in the sky, and I attributed them to the festival. I wanted to take a shortcut through an alley. Karube balked at first then followed me in. As soon as we entered, it did the same like for you. Like a storm had descended. When we came out the other side, the streets were empty."

"It must have been a shock."

"It was. We were expecting to see people and fun things to do, but...there was nothing."

When I fell silent, it was his turn to console me...

...with a smoldering kiss.